Summer internships and jobs are important for personal and professional growth, and the process of finding, applying to, and interviewing for the right job can be a huge task. We all sometimes find ourselves sitting before a blank Word document, trying to figure out what relevant experiences we have to write about.
Depending on your field of interest, both leadership and technical experience through Outdoor Education can be extremely beneficial. Obviously, camp and guiding jobs value experiences gained through personal excursions as well as leading trips. If you know how to spin your experiences, though, both leadership and technical experience can help you snag that coveted position.
Leadership experience can be straightforward to add to a resume or cover letter. Your experience leading NSO helped you learn how to lead meaningful discussions and deal with group dynamics; when leading a climbing trip, you learned about risk management and working with people to achieve goals; and leading a hut trip taught you a lot about researching, creating, and executing an elaborate plan. Leading an ORC trip is very similar to leading anything else, and if you know how to write about it, you can certainly impress employers with skills gained solely through ORC trips.
At first glance, technical skills may be harder to market. Not many employers care whether or not you are a stellar belayer or that you hiked twelve 14-ers last year (although some do). Many, however, value perseverance, ambition, ability to work independently and in a team, risk management, and goal-setting. Don’t forget to mention if you’re a Wilderness First Responder. Additionally, some employers actually do care that you’re a fantastic outdoorsperson. The National Park Service and Forest Service are often looking for great hikers. The U.S. Geological Survey gives preference to people with solid all-around backcountry skills. Field biology values strong hikers, and jobs involving birds or arboreal species place value on climbing ability.